Our Top Tips for B Corp Certification

The B Corp badge is one that many businesses wear with pride, and rightfully so. The B Impact Assessment can be a daunting process no matter the size or scope of your business. The Assessment covers questions across five key areas: Governance, Workers, Community, Environment and Customers. It serves as an invaluable ‘health check’ for businesses, helping them to identify areas in which they excel, and other areas that perhaps need more focus.

 Whether you are undertaking the B Impact Assessment for the first time, or you are getting re-certified, here are our top tips to make the process as streamlined, and enjoyable as possible.

 Make it a team effort

The Impact Assessment includes questions from multiple business functions. From HR to Finance, Operations, Sustainability and Customer Service – the assessment covers it all! We suggest picking out key personnel from each team and having them involved in process from day one. If your company has outside investors or owners, we’d suggest getting them involved too. You’ll receive a valuable insight into each service stream, and it makes the process more fun when you work together as a team!

Assign weekly time

Whether you are certifying for the first time, or getting re-certified after 3 years, you’ll be given your submission date far in advance. We suggest assigning weekly time to work on the Impact Assessment – little and often is key! Set up weekly meetings to determine a timeline for the certification process and make sure everyone is the team understands what they are responsible for, and most importantly, why it’s a part of the B Corp Assessment -  key themes throughout the assessment are transparency, accountability and performance to best determine your B Corp score.

Get involved with the community

The B Corp community is setting a gold standard for businesses that are not only best in the world, but best for the world. The B Corp community offers so many resources to their members, from the B Hive network – a peer to peer online network to other B Corp collaborations and face-to-face events.  They will provide you with all the support and guidance you can need to join their global community of high-performing, mission-driven businesses, so make the most of it!

Enjoy the process!

After all, you’re on your way to becoming a B Corp, and that is a great achievement! After the assessment, you have an efficient way to compare with other companies and improve your practices. Plus, you’ll know you’re one of the mission-led businesses globally who are setting the gold standard for sustainability and social responsibility. Once the process is complete, remember to celebrate – you did it!